Three groups of diesters have been isolated and identified in the lipids of steer meibomian glands. The first group, designated as alpha Type I, with the abbreviated formula FA-alpha OHFA-FAlc, consisted of alpha-hydroxy fatty acids esterified to fatty acids and fatty alcohols in the approximate molar ratio 1:1:1. The second group, designated as omega Type I-St, with the abbreviated formula FA-omega OHFA-St, consisted of omega-hydroxy fatty acids esterified to fatty acids and sterols in the approximate molar ratio 1:1:1. The third group, designated as alpha, omega Type II, with the abbreviated formula FA-alpha, omega diol-FA, consisted of alpha, omega-diols esterified to 2 moles of fatty acids. The sum of the different diesters comprised about 9% of total steer meibomian lipids. Capillary GLC of the fatty acids of alpha Type I diesters showed the fatty acids to be a family with a two-cluster profile, one at C12 to C20 and the other at C21 to C31, with anteiso chains predominating. Fatty acids from omega Type I-St and alpha, omega Type II diesters gave mainly a one-cluster profile in the short chain region with prominent anteiso and C18:1 peaks. Fatty alcohols of alpha Type I diesters were mainly long chain, C23 to C30, with anteiso chains predominating, while the alpha-hydroxy fatty acids were short chain C13 to C18 acids with C16 predominating. The sterols in diesters omega Type I-St were cholesterol (approximately 60%), delta 7 cholestenol (approximately 35%) and an unidentified compound (approximately 5%) with a GLC retention time slightly longer than delta 7 cholestenol on SE-30 phase. The omega-hydroxy fatty acids and alpha, omega-diols both were of exceedingly long chain lengths, C29-C38, and showed similar GLC profiles. Two types of triesters comprising approximately 1% of total steer meibomian lipids have been isolated but incompletely characterized. In terms of molar ratios, one group of triesters gave fatty acids:omega-hydroxy fatty acids:alpha-hydroxy fatty acids:sterols + fatty alcohols as approximately 1:1:1:1. The other contained fatty acids, alpha-hydroxy fatty acids and alpha, omega-diols in what appears to be a complex mixture of several triesters. Diesters omega Type I and alpha, omega Type II also were found in human meibum. Hitherto these two diesters have not been found in any animal tissue.

The forced swim test (FST) is a preclinical test to the screening of antidepressants based on rats or mice behaviours, which is also sensitive to stimulants of motor activity. This work standardised and validated a method to register the active and passive behaviours of Swiss mice during the FST in order to strength the specificity of the test. Adult male Swiss mice were subjected to the FST for 6 min without any treatment or after intraperitoneal injection of saline (0.1 ml/10 g), antidepressants (imipramine, desipramine, or fluoxetine, 30 mg/kg) or stimulants (caffeine, 30 mg/kg or apomorphine, 10mg/kg). The latency, frequency and duration of behaviours (immobility, swimming, and climbing) were scored and summarised in bins of 6, 4, 2 or 1 min. Parameters were first analysed using Principal Components Analysis generating components putatively related to antidepressant (first and second) or to stimulant effects (third). Antidepressants and stimulants affected similarly the parameters grouped into all components. Effects of stimulants on climbing were better distinguished of antidepressants when analysed during the last 4 min of the FST. Surprisingly, the effects of antidepressants on immobility were better distinguished from saline when parameters were scored in the first 2 min. The method proposed here is able to distinguish antidepressants from stimulants of motor activity using Swiss mice in the FST. This refinement should reduce the number of mice used in preclinical evaluation of antidepressants.

Ozonolysis studies of the monoenes of the fatty chain types in lipids of steer meibomian gland excreta (meibum) have confirmed earlier structural assignments based on gas liquid chromatography (GLC) retention data and have assisted in assigning complete structures to a group of recently identified omega-hydroxy fatty acids. The omega-hydroxy acids include straight-chain monoenoic acids (85%), saturated anteiso and iso acids (13%), monoenoic acids of the latter group (1%) and, finally, saturates of the normal monoenoic acids (1%). All the fatty chains of meibum can be biosynthesized by a unified process of chain buildup to primary chain lengths of 12:0-20:0 for the straight evens, with 16:0 predominating, 13:0-21:0 for the straight odds with 17:0 predominating, i16:0 to i28:0 for the iso and ai17:0 to ai29:0 for the anteiso chain types; then delta 9 desaturation of each of these chain types: and finally chain elongation of 1-10 C2 units. Some chain degradation may also occur. The meibum lipid components involved are unsubstituted fatty acids, alpha-OH fatty acids, alpha-OH fatty acids, omega-OH fatty acids, fatty alcohols and some other lipid components incompletely characterized. The carbon skeletons are straight even, straight odd, iso and anteiso except that the alpha-OH fatty acids are only straight even and straight odd and these chains are not elongated. All fatty chains are almost entirely saturated and monoenoic, the polyenes occurring in only trace amounts. Biosynthesis of the fatty chains of human meibum evidently occurs similarly, except that considerably more 18:0 than 16:0 fatty acids are built up by the fatty acid synthetase, before desaturation and extension.

No abstract

Lichen phenolic compounds exhibit antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiproliferative, and cytotoxic activities. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the anticancer activity of lecanoric acid, a secondary metabolite of the lichen Parmotrema tinctorum, and its derivatives, orsellinates, obtained by structural modifi cation. A cytotoxicity assay was carried out in vitro with sulforhodamine B (SRB) using HEp-2 larynx carcinoma, MCF7 breast carcinoma, 786-0 kidney carcinoma, and B16-F10 murine melanoma cell lines, in addition to a normal (Vero) cell line in order to calculate the selectivity index of the compounds. n-Butyl orsellinate was the most active compound, with IC50 values (the concentration that inhibits 50% of growth) ranging from 7.2 to 14.0 μg/mL, against all the cell lines tested. The compound was more active (IC50 = 11.4 μg/mL) against B16-F10 cells than was cisplatin (12.5 μg/mL). Conversely, lecanoric acid and methyl orsellinate were less active against all cell lines, having an IC50 value higher than 50 μg/mL. Ethyl orsellinate was more active against HEp-2 than against MCF7, 786-0, or B16-F10 cells. The same pattern was observed for n-propyl and n-butyl orsellinates. n-Pentyl orsellinate was less active than n-propyl or n-butyl orsellinates against HEp-2 cells. The orsellinate activity increased with chain elongation (from methyl to n-butyl), a likely consequence of an increase in lipophilicity. The results revealed that the structural modifi cation of lecanoric acid increases the cytotoxic activity of the derivatives tested.